Musical-instrument support



A. MORTENSEN I M'LSJZCAI; INSTRUMENT SUPPORT 7 Filed Feb. 19, 1925 INVENTOR ATTORNEY AUGUST Mani/v55 Patented Jan. 19, 1926.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

AUGUST MORTENSEN, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOB TO THE FRISCO MFG. CO. INC., OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

MUSICAL-INSTRUMENT SUPPORT.

Application filed February 19, 1925.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, AUGUST MoRTENsEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at 244C Eddy Street, San Francisco, in the county of San Francisco and State of California, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Musical-Instrument Supports, of which the following is a specification.

This invent-ion relates to supports or hold ing devices for musical instruments of various kinds and classes and particularly to large brass instruments, as for example Sousaphones.

The object of this invention is to provide a'support or holder of this class, combined with means for adjustably supporting an instrument in connection therewith and for moving said instrumentinto a position to facilitate the playing or operation thereof by a musician, whereby the operator is relieved of the laborious work of holding and supporting such instrument in the operation of playing the same.

A further object being to provide a support or holder of the class specified which is composed of a plurality of movable and adjustably connected parts, whereby a complete device may be adjusted into an operative position and held secure in such position.

By the use of this device an operator is enabled to swing his instrument into an inoperative position while seated near this support or holder in substantially a horizontal plane, and is enabled to obtain a rapid replacement of his instrument into an operative position when occasion demands.

Another object of this invention is to provide a support of this sort which may be inexpensively formed from standard metal tubing, and which has an upright member and connecting members of like form, also to provide such supports with improved locking or securing means between the upright member and connecting members, which when released, will permit the support to be easily adjusted to lit different sizes of instruments.

The invention is fully disclosed in the following specification, of which the accompanying drawing forms a part, in which separate parts of my improvement are designated by suitable reference characters in each of the views, and in which:

Serial No. 10,332.

Fig. 1 is a vertical longitudinal side view of my improved support and holding device in an inoperative position and diagrammatically illustrating the method of its use;

Fig. 2 a vertical longitudinal front view my improved support and holding dev1ce in an operative position and diagrammatically illustrating; the method of its use by an operator; I

Fig 3 a plan view of part of the construction on an enlarged scale on the line AA of Fig. 1;

Fig. a detail view of the construction of pne of the instrument supporting means; anc

Fig. 5 a detail horizontal View on the line BB of Fig. 1, illustrating the curvature of another instrument supporting means.

The base 1 is preferably secured to a base board 2, of sufficient size to also accommodate a suitable chair for use by the operator, the chair is intended to be placed directly in front of said base 1, and when so placed, will incidentally prevent any tilting movement of the device. Secured within the base 1 is a tubular standard member 3. An upright member 4 is movably mounted in the tubular standard 8 and is adapted to be adjusted vertically within said tubular standard 3 and being secured in diflerent positions of vertical adjustment by a collar 5, provided with a set-screw 6 which is adapted to engage and hold the collar 5 in position on the upright member 4. The collar 5 is intended to seat upon the upper end of the tubular standard member 3 and revolving thereon as will hereinafter be de scribed.

iThe horizontally disposed supporting member 7 is curved in an outwardly direction, as shown in detail in Fig. 5, and is provided at one end with a collar 8 which adapts it to be adjustably mounted on the upright member 4 and said collar is pro vided with a set-screw 9 which is adapted to engage and hold said supporting member 7 in position on said upright member 4:.

This method of constructing the said outwardly directed curved supporting member, provides the necessary space needed to permit an operator to be seated between the upright member of the device and the instrument placed there-on without any bodily interference to, or the operator, as illusset-screw trated diagrammatically in Fig. 2. Secured instrument is then placed into the curved to the opposite end of said curved supporting member 7, is a collar provided with a 11. An instrument supporting element, comprising an upwardly directed curved member 12, centrally disposed on this member 12 is a downwardly extending pivot 13 securely attached thereto. The Said curved member 12 being pivotally mounted within said collar 10 and adapted to be held and secured therein, in suitable adjustment by means of the set-screw 11. The outer cndsof the curved member 12, as at 1 1 and 15 respectively, are provided with oppositely disposed and upwardly directed curved projecting members 16 provided with felt facings 17. The curvatures of said member 12, and of its projecting members 16, conform very closely to the curvature of the instrument tubing. It being intended to support an instrument therein as illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2. A strap 18 is provided to secure the instrument within this supporting element as shown in Fig. 2.

The horizontally disposed bar member 19 is provided at one end with a collar 20 which adapts it to be adjustably mounted on the upright member 4 and is provided with a set-screw 21 which is adapted to engage and hold said bar member 19 in position on said upright member 1. Secured to the opposite end of the bar member is a collar 22 provided with a set-screw 23. V The horizontally disposed arm 24, being at one end, as at 25, bent in a downwardly direction to form a pivot, is pivotally mounted within said collar and adapted to be held secure therein, in an adjusted position by means of the said set-screw 23.

To the opposite end of the arm 24 is secured a second instrument supporting element, comprising a downwardly directed inverted U shaped member 26, provided with outwardly directed curved end members 27 provided with felt facings 28. The curvature of the members 26 and 27 conforms very closely to the outer contour of the instrument at its point of contact with the said second supporting element, as more clearly illustrated in Fig. 1. A band of suitable webbing is provided, to surround the instrument and to hold it secured against the said supporting element.

The use of my improved instrument support or holding device will be readily understood from the foregoing description when taken in connection with the accompanying drawing and the following statement.

he support or holding device, with an instrument placed thereon, is normally in the inoperative position shown in Fig. 1 when not in use. In setting the device up for use, the standard upright member 4 is adjusted to the desired height by means of the collar The rounded lower part of the supporting element and secured thereto by means of the strap 18. The upper part of the instrument is then placedv against the inverted U shaped member 26 and secured thereto in a similar manner. The inclination of the instrument desired to the vertical line, as shown in Fig. 1, is obtained by suitable adjustments effected by means of the set-screws 21 on collar 20 and 23 on collar 22 respectively.

It may be apparent by now that my improved supporting dcvice may be swung in substantially a horizontal plane, toward or away from the operator or musician while seated, as may be desired, without disturbing the location of its base member 1. The upright member 4. being held in an adjusted vertical position by the collar 5, revolving within the tubular fixed standard 3, on and with the collar The operator or musician, preferably seated on a chair placed in front of the base 1, upon the base board 2, will on y need, in order to place his instrument into an operative position, to draw or turn the device including the instrument towards him and by slightly bending forward place the tubing of the instrun'ient about his body, as illustrated diagrammatically in Fig. 2. A musician may then sit in juxtaposition to the support or holding device with the mouthpiece of the Sousaphone in convenient position relative to the mouth of the operator to facilitate the operation or playing of the instrument, and my improved device will i eliminate the necessity of the operator holding' orsupporting the instrument; while playing the same.

It has heretofore been the custom to place this instrument over a shoulder of the operator or musician for supporting the same while playing such instrument, this method of suspending the instrument does entirely support the weight thereof, and as instruments of this class are of considerable weight, it is a very tiresome procedure. By using one of my improved supporting devices, however, the operator or musician is taxed in no way in the support of such instrument.

It will be understood that while I have shown a specific use of my improved device, that I am not necessarily limited to this use nor am I necessarily limited to the specific construction of the support herein shown and described, and various changes therein and modifications thereof may be made, within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit of my invention or sacrificing its advantages.

Having fully described my invention, what-I claimas new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:-

1. A device of the class described, comprising a base member, a tubular standard secured upon said base member, said stand ard provided with a vertically adjustable member, a horizontally disposed curved supporting member mounted on said vertically adjustable member, means for holding said curved supporting member in different positions of adjustment, a curved instrument supporting element pivotally mounted on said curved supporting member, a horizontally disposed bar member mounted on said vertically adjustable member above the said horizontally disposed curved supporting member and spaced therefrom, means for securing the bar member in ditterent positions against movement, a horizontally disposed arm part pivotally supported by said bar men'iber, said arm part provided with instrument supporting means, said instrument supporting means cooperating with the aforementioned curved instrument supporting element to support an instrument, and operative means whereby the vertically adjustable member including the 00* operating instrument supporting means connected thereto may be swung in sub stantially a horizontal plane.

In a device of the class described, comprising a base member, a tubular standard secured to said base member, said standard provided with a movably mounted uprightmember, means for securing said movable upright member in ditterent positions of vertical adjustment, a horizontally disposed, outwardly directed curved supporting member adjustably mounted on said upright member, a collar provided at the outer end of said curved supporting memher, an upwardly directed curved instrument supporting member provided with a pivot, pivotally supported within said collar, said upwardly curved instrument sup porting member provided with oppositely disposed, up 'ardly directed projections, a horizontally disposed bar member adjustably mounted on said upright member over.

and above the said curved supporting member and spaced therefrom, a horizontally disposed arm part pivot-ally supported by said bar member, means for securing said bar men'iber and said arm part in different position 0t adjustments, an inverted U shaped instrument supporting element secured to the outer end of said arm part, said inverted U shaped supporting element operatii 'ely coopeating with the aforementioned upwardly curved instrument sup porting nuuuber, in the joint support of an instrument, and operative means whereby the instrun'ient supporting device may be rotated in a horizontal plane.

In testimony whereof I have ElffiXGCl my signature.

AUGUST MORTENSEN. 

